THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) in Zamboanga has impounded 18 vehicles as part of its anti-smuggling campaign since January 2019.
BOC-Zamboanga district collector Segundo Sigmundfreud Barte, Jr., said the vehicles, which included sports utility vehicles (SUVs), were being used by smugglers in transporting contraband.
Barte said most of the seized contraband are cigarettes that were illegally imported from other countries, like Malaysia and Indonesia.
Barte said the vehicles will not be released without due process.
“We have no choice but to impound the vehicles since these were involved in smuggling activities. The release of the vehicles will have to pass through the process,” he said.
He said the anti-smuggling campaign will continue and will be intensified in line with the marching orders of President Rodrigo Duterte to curb smuggling. (SunStar Zamboanga)